15G THE BIRDS OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



178. BEWICK'S SWAN. 



Cygnus heicicki. 



This Swan was first distinguished and specifically 

 separated from the Whooper by Yarrell, who bestowed 

 its English name in honour of the famous engraver 

 and author, Thomas Bewick, whose life-like portraits 

 of British Birds are as pei'fect as human genius could 

 produce, and in my humble opinion have never been 

 equalled. The first occurrence of this species in our 

 district of which I find any record is not a very 

 positive one, and has reference to Whittlesea Mere ; 

 it occurs in Yarrell, 4th edition, vol. iv. p. 316, 

 where I find it stated that " during the severe 

 weather of December 1827, Wild Sw^ans were 

 unusually numerous ; more than fifty were counted in 

 one flock at Whittlesea Mere." Here is a full stop, 

 but the next paragraph runs thus : — " From a con- 

 siderable number which had been forwarded to the 

 London markets for sale the author selected five 

 examples of this new species, of different ages " : I 

 leave it to my reader's discernment to decide whether 

 or not I am justified in considering that it was the 

 intention of the writer from whom I quote to convey 

 the inference that some of the present species were 

 sent to London from Whittlesea ; however, my next 

 record is positive enough, although it refers to a 

 locality outside of our county, and has been pub- 

 lished by Mr. M. Browne in his ' Vertebrates of 

 Leicestershire and Rutland.' My excuse in this 

 instance for intruding upon INIr. Browne's adopted 

 district is not only that the locality of the occur- 

 rence is within a few yards of our Northamptonshire 

 frontier, but also that I have been, in possession 



